To make that (extraordinarily long) stop even more fun, our mostly potty-trained child had a blow out in her pull up (Praise the Lord I still insist on putting her in double pull ups when traveling). Completely unexpected and unsuspected. It wasn't until I got her into the bathroom (not the nice, roomy, handicap stall with the changing table- that one was in use) and helped her pull down her pants did I find out about this blow out. It was just everywhere. Thankfully, I had a spare pull up and an anti-bacterial hand wipe or two in my purse. I had to do all of this with Claire standing up, which was, um, challenging. Oi. She was wearing leggings underneath a tutu, so I was able to (oh so carefully) peel her leggings off, and she was still "dressed," albeit oddly. Brad was rather confused as to why it took us so long in the bathroom, but when he saw my face, he figured it out pretty quickly. At least we got to eat Chick-Fil-A as a reward for the Mess That Was That Dinner Stop.
Christmas in Alabama was a little different this year, as my sister had to have surgery around her tailbone about a week before Christmas. This left her on her stomach or side full-time for the entire time we were there (plus a while before and after, bless). Mom and Dad set Amiee up in the living room on the pull out couch, so that she could still be in the middle of the action. Claire thought it was so fun that Bo (what she calls Amiee) had a compound in the middle of the room and spent a lot of her time keeping Bo company. She was constantly asking if she could go see/talk to/kiss/eat with Bo. Thankfully, Amiee loved it; otherwise, she would have just been trapped in place with lots of enthusiastic affection. Due to Amiee's immobility, we kept our Christmas outings and frolicking to a minimum, since Amiee couldn't participate in much of anything.
Some of my frolicking consisted of going to the dentist and getting my haircut. I was very excited about both of these appointments, as I've had tooth trouble for about a year and a half (despite two different dentists giving me two different fillings on the same tooth in two different states), and the only haircut I've had in Durham was TERRIBLE. Like, genuinely bad. I'm not too precious about haircuts in general, given that my hair grows pretty quickly, but this one was just dreadful. So, having my favorite dentist take a look at things and the guy who has been cutting my hair since I was 11 fix things was awesome.
On Christmas Eve, Dad, Brad, Claire, and I participated in the Brassart family tradition of attending the Vespers service at church. It's definitely a favorite, and it was super sad that Amiee and Mom couldn't join. It's a sweet little service where we sing a few songs, Bro. Jimmy invites all the children up to the platform, reads the Christmas story, and we disperse. It's only half an hour long, which is unexpected for newcomers. Claire went for her very first Christmas two years ago, as a 10-month-old, so this was a vastly different experience, given that she's so much bigger. She really enjoyed looking around the sanctuary (it's quite large and has a lot of decorations up at Christmas), and my dad took her down to the front for the Christmas story. I was a little concerned that she would be overwhelmed or scared (she does that sometimes), but she seemed to really enjoy it. She's quite the extrovert, so I imagine she tapped into that facet of her personality.
The kiddies listening to the Christmas story.
Christmas carols with Poppy at Vespers.
Our traditional picture with Bro. Jimmy (minus Amiee :( ) Also, please note that I'm laughing and Claire's sticking out her tongue. This was the best we got.
And one with Brad. Bro Jimmy insisted.
Sweet friends who even brought Claire a Christmas present! She loves it.
After the service was over, I was trying hard to say hi to and hug lots of favorite friends that I hadn't seen in a while, but it's HARD when it's Christmas Eve and very crowded. I felt like I didn't get to give anyone any real quality attention or conversation. However, I found out that my child is quite popular among a lot of folks that she'd never met. I guess her presence on social media has sparked a lot of interest in family friends who had never had a chance to meet her. THANKFULLY, she rose to the occasion and spoke to everyone, smiled a lot, and gave hugs when prompted (this isn't always the way things pan out, so I was relieved). I sort of felt like she had celebrity status. And, I think she rather liked it. How disconcerting... She also enjoyed running around the sanctuary (as it emptied) with the child of a high school friend of mine (how weird is that??).
After Vespers, we headed home for our traditional chili supper (in the midst of a not-so-traditional tornado watch), which we paired with a "Happy Birthday, Jesus" cake. To say Claire loved it would be a massive understatement. She continued to love it for the next few days as we polished off cake leftovers. So. much. sugar. She didn't go to sleep until after 10. CENTRAL time, which means 11 Eastern (which her body clock runs on)...
...and then she woke up before her normal time (7:00). I guess that's normal for kids on Christmas Day. The rest of us, however, were tired. Because we're grown-ups (that's code for getting older. And one of us suffers from pregnancy-induced insomnia.). Brad and I kept Claire contained as long as we could (about half an hour), and it was hard work. She'd been walking around for weeks, singing "ARRRE YOU READDDY FOR CHRISTMAS DAY TO COMMME??" from the Curious George Christmas movie, and it had finally come! Her enthusiasm was terribly cute and contagious.
We participated in another Brassart Christmas tradition: the Christmas story before opening gifts. She waited far more patiently than I expected while Daddy read the Christmas story (as in, the real one. From the book of Luke).
Amiee's dog, Winnie, was also there for Christmas! Winnie is adorable, and we all enjoyed having her around. Claire particularly enjoyed playing with both her and Bingley, my parents' Corgi (who is also adorable). For those who want to know (and most people do), Winnie is a Miniature Teddy Bear Goldendoodle. She has her own Instagram account, which I highly recommend following: Winniewoodle. It will brighten glum days.
Here's Claire being possessive of Winnie. Poor, Winnie. She was such a good sport. Also, notice Amiee's pillow fortress. Partially used to prop her up and partially to protect her from Winnie and Claire.
Then we did presents! We all got lots of fun stuff (ahem, I got a Harry Potter adult coloring book and I love it), and Claire really enjoyed the unwrapping/taking turns process. She got a xylophone (just like Betsy from Curious George!), Disney princess dolls (she hasn't actually seen Disney princess movies other than Frozen but she really likes her dolls), a View Master (remember those?), and some rain boots (BIG HIT). Alabama Santa also brought her another pair of boots that are cuter than any of mine. What's the deal, Santa? Amiee gave Claire a complete set of Ramona Quimby books, which I am pumped about reading with her in a few years. Amiee has been starting Claire's bigger kid book collections, and it's awesome. She now has Ramona and Anne of Green Gables (which I am almost counting down the days until she's old enough for us to read...not really because her getting older makes me sad).
Brad and I are totally turning into parents (I mean, other than the fact that we already have a child and another on the way), as evidenced by our favorite gifts: Costco membership renewal and museum membership renewal. Yippee! We can go spend the morning at the museum and follow it with a hot dog from Costco. Perfection. We also each got massages (!), which we totally loved. Thanks, Alabama Santas! Oh, and my dad picked out gifts for Amiee and me- all by himself- that are fantastic! They're candles in beautiful tea cups. Good job, Daddy! New Baby even got a few gifts.
Love.
Claire took this one. She's working on her photography skills.
She took this one, too. Brad wasn't actually angry; he was mimicking Claire's favorite face to use these days. Also, this is the only picture I got of Amiee the whole time. At least it's a cute one.
Brad got another kitchen tool that he enjoyed wielding. Have I ever written about Brad's culinary skill set? If not, I should.
Hanging with Nana, post-present opening.
Due to all the tornadoes hitting the southeast on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, the weather on Christmas Day was extremely rainy and there was quite a bit of flooding throughout the county. My grammy, aunt, and uncle were going to come over for Christmas afternoon, but with standing water in the streets, we all decided it would be best if they stayed put. After Tennessee Tornado 2008, our family does not play fast and loose with severe weather.
Despite all the yucky weather, our college friend, Nathan, drove up from Birmingham to meet us for lunch on the 26th (the weather had calmed down a lot). It was so fun to catch up with him (even if Claire was being a toot that day) and share queso at one of our favorite Huntsville Mexican restaurants. Three cheers for friends who stay friends nearly a decade post-college!
Much movie watching took place while in Alabama; partially because we have a lot of Christmas movies we traditionally watch and partially because Amiee was immobile and had few other outlets. We watched the original 3 Star Wars again with the family (not out of tradition but because the new one had just come out), and of course, Claire clamored for multiple viewings of Jimmy Fallon and crew doing their Star Wars thing. Bo, being the doting aunt that she is, obliged many times. We also worked our way through All I Want for Christmas, White Christmas, Home Alone 1 and 2, and Family Man.
Because of Claire's deep and abiding love of Christmas lights and decor, my parents made sure that she got to go to the Galaxy of Lights at the Botanical Gardens and to a nearby outdoor mall that goes all out for Christmas. She absolutely LOVED it.
Gi-normous reindeer made of lights.
Mesmerized.
Telling us about the star. That shines down on Bethlehem where Baby Jesus was born.
Kisses for Poppy.
And to make things even more fun, there was a TRAIN!
We did Christmas with my mom's side of the family a couple days after Christmas and then with my dad's side a couple of days after that. It was fun to watch Claire play with my cousins' children (all girls on one side, 3 girls and 1 boy on the other) while we got to catch up with cousins, aunts, uncles, and my grammy. Also: Mom and Dad gave the cousins on Mom's side hula hoops for Christmas and made sure they had one for Claire, as well. She became extremely attached to her "circle," to the point of insisting that it sleep beside her bed at night (next to the ukulele from Ray Ray). She has a problem, y'all. She got really fun and thoughtful gifts (as did we) from our extended family, as well. Including a tractor blanket made by little cousins. They had seen a picture on Instagram of her riding Grandpa's tractor, knew she liked tractors, and made her a pink John Deere blanket. So sweet.
Little cousins on Mom's side. Claire actually cooperated for these pictures. I was floored. I think it was the positive peer pressure.
Just hanging out and eating apples.
The blanket inspiration picture.
Kisses from Grammy.
With Grammy and the little cousins on Daddy's side. Getting this shot was kind of miraculous. Brad took it, so GOOD JOB, BRAD!
We had a fantastic time in Alabama, despite the lousy weather and Amiee being out of commission. Both sides of our family are so incredibly wonderful, and we miss them so much. Thank you, Mom, Dad, and Amiee for such a lovely Christmas week. We had so much fun with you and were very sad to leave. Can't wait for your next visit!
And...I leave you with a doozie of a Claire story. Throughout Advent, Brad and I worked with Claire on memorizing Isaiah 9:6. She did very well memorizing it and really enjoyed reciting it for people. She still asks to recite it during evening prayers (even though we've moved on to learning Psalm 23. We let her say it every time, by George). Amiee got a great video of her saying it and posted it to Facebook and Instagram, if you want to see it (and you follow Amiee). Anyway, a family friend came over one night to visit Amiee, and while she was there, Claire quoted Isaiah for her. When she finished, she oh so dramatically, put her hand on her chest AND BOWED HER HEAD AS IF SHE JUST FINISHED A SHAKESPEAREAN SOLILOQUY. I was simultaneously overcome with giggles and horrified. I made sure to clarify that we did NOT teach her to dramatize her recitation. Oh my. It was such a spectacle. I kind of wish I had a video.
Now look at that: I finished up all the Christmas posts before January is even over. Who am I?? Here's hoping and can keep up the regular blog posting. (crosses fingers)
Oh! And here's a picture of yet another item that Claire became inexplicably attached to:
She kept calling it "Poppy's Robot." Who knows why...
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